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An online social network is designed for parents and caregivers of children with autism. MyAutismTeam, which launched in December 2011, aims to provide a venue to raise awareness and support, and has registered more than 22,000 parents so far, said Eric Peacock, co-founder and CEO of MyHealthTeams.

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Educators at a school in New York say moving to an inclusion model three years ago has improved learning for students with autism. The school hired staff members who help students remain in general-education classrooms. Educators also developed a "sensory" room to meet students' needs in a safe area. "The overall goal is complete inclusion," teacher Colleen Gleason said.

A drug compound known as GRN-529 is showing promise for the treatment of repetitive behaviors and socialization, considered to be two major facets of autism, researchers say. "Our findings suggest a strategy for developing a single treatment that could target multiple diagnostic symptoms," said the National Institute of Mental Health's Jacqueline Crawley, who worked on the study that was published Wednesday in the journal Science Translational Medicine.

Some parents and educators question how special-education teachers will be able to meet the needs of students with disabilities who will be dispersed among inclusion classrooms. However, others say inclusion has many benefits for all students, exposing those without disabilities to a more diverse student body, while offering access to a more rigorous curriculum for students with disabilities.

The website MyAutismTeam is an online resource and social network for families who have children with autism. The site was launched in June by technology executive Eric Peacock -- whose nephew has Asperger's syndrome -- and has since amassed roughly 12,500 members. "We originally launched this as a way to share providers," Peacock said. "But what keeps people coming back is finding emotional support from a community that won't judge them."

Scientists said they have sequenced the 22,000 genes of the domestic cow and have identified special genes that control the cow's reproduction, digestion, lactation and immunity to diseases. These genes "may provide an enabling tool for genetic improvement within the beef and dairy industries," the study's author said.